It Will Always Catch Up
by mahlia
Summary: <html><head></head>Artemis realizes she can't keep her past hidden forever. But no matter how hard she tries to keep it buried, someone is more than willing to help her dig it up, exposing it for all to see. Rated T for future chapters, no obvious pairings.</html>
1. Prologue

I know this isn't my usual 3,000-word post, but it's a prologue to something I've been working on. (That's right, it'll have chapters!) It will focus on Artemis and will likely be a bit AU, since I have no idea what I'm doing with this. I haven't written much in the last month, I know; the last few weeks have been.. difficult. Anyway. Moving on.

For the first time, I have a bit of an outline for this story put together. It all came to me so quickly that there was no way I would be able to write it like I normally would. (Which is sitting down and literally writing it from beginning to end, without stopping.) Hopefully I'll show a bit more restraint this time and not post everything all at once, like I did with 'Broken Robins and Bleeding Bats'. It's more fun keeping readers in suspense, I think.

**Title:** It Will Always Catch Up  
><strong>Author:<strong> me!  
><strong>Rating:<strong> T for later chapters

Disclaimer: I own nothing. And the only thing I get out of all of this is the squeal of joy when people fav it or review it.

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><p>They circled.<p>

Predators circling their prey before lunging and devouring it whole, they circled. There were no victims here, however, no defenseless creatures trying to avoid being eaten. These two were circling each other, not making a sound. Like two mountain lions, they lurked and stared, eye to eye, waiting for the other to make the fatal mistake of turning her back.

The raven-haired assassin invaded the silence first.

"What, you haven't told them yet?" Cheshire tilted her head in mock-curiosity and stopped for a moment. She glanced from Artemis to her soon-to-be former teammates. "This is just too much to handle!" she laughed. "Are you ashamed, Artemis? Ashamed of who you used to be?"

Artemis didn't spare a glance in the direction of her team. She didn't need to in order to feel the shock that coursed through the group at the suggestion of the colossal lie she was now captured in. The audible gasps from Megan and Kid Flash ripped through her and she actually winced, dreading the confrontation she knew would come later. She drew an arrow from her quiver and notched it into her bow, her gaze never wavering. Cheshire grinned at the obvious reaction she got from the archer.

"Hey, can we get back to me taking you down? As much as I'd love to stand here and chat all night, I'd prefer not to." Artemis cocked an eyebrow, daring Cheshire to come at her. "I have stuff to do."

"Now now, what kind of manners are those, talking to a former teammate that way? We used to be such good friends. Almost like sisters." Cheshire gracefully parried toward Artemis, swinging her sword quickly, almost _too_ quickly, and Artemis barely had enough time to lean away. Her arrow clattered to the floor as she held her bow up in front of her. The blade ricocheted off the bow, knocking them both back a step.

"Do me a favor," Artemis replied, crouching to dodge another swing from Cheshire. "Shut the hell up. This isn't about them. This is between you and me." She swept one of her long legs out, tripping her. Then Artemis pounced, kneeing Cheshire in the ribcage and deftly disarming her of her sword. Cheshire merely grinned and rolled Artemis, trapping her beneath her.

"On the contrary," Cheshire said, lowering her voice and leaning toward Artemis' ear. She was so close her dark hair tickled Artemis' cheek. "It's about _much_ more than just you and me this time." She slammed Artemis' head into the floor and rolled away, snatching her sword from the floor and holding it out in front of her. She stayed in her crouched position, waiting for Artemis to get up.

Artemis sat up, leaning on her elbow and rubbing the back of her head. A dark scowl replaced the pained frown. "You even _think _about hurting them, you'll regret it. I promise you that."

Cheshire's back and shoulders straightened in surprise at the venom behind her words. "Why, Artemis. You're threatening me?" She placed a slender hand on her chest in mock offense. "I'd say I'm offended, but I'd be lying. I look forward to your attempt to actually stop me." She turned and started to walk away. "The Shadows would be so disappointed to see you now," she called over her shoulder. "All that training, wasted on saving people and trying to prevent the inevitable."

Artemis stood and watched Cheshire saunter into the darkness. She touched the back of her head, her fingers coming away red. Robin appeared next to her with a gauze pad in his hand. Looking down at her feet, she plucked it from his fingers and held it to her head.

"Artemis, what was she talking about? What would the Shadows train you to do?" he asked quietly. The rest of the team hung back behind him. Their expressions ranged from confusion to disappointment and she couldn't bear the disappointment, even though she'd earned it. She looked at Robin; he looked concerned, but guarded. But when she didn't answer he stepped back, his face morphing from concern to distrust. Artemis bit her lip and turned away, heading for the loading dock.

He already knew.

He just wanted confirmation.


	2. Chapter 1

Here's the actual first chapter. This is likely going to turn very AU, as far as Artemis' past is concerned. I know nothing about it and wanted to explore it.

Just as a warning, though - if you aren't a fan of angst and heartbreak, you might not like this story. I was in a bit of a funk, as it were, when the idea came to me. While it's not particularly violent, it's definitely... moody.

Each chapter will be rated individually, but it will be a T for later chapters. This chapter is a K+.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Young Justice or DC Comics. The only things I hope to get out of this are reviews, since they make my day and tell me what works/what doesn't.

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><p>Artemis stared at the mask up on the shelf, recounting the night she ran into Cheshire.<p>

_"I suppose now you bring me to justice. Let your new friends interrogate me. I wonder if your position's secure enough to survive them learning everything I know." Artemis lowered her bow, knowing she'd been beaten. Quite handily, she might add. "Didn't think so. So like the Cheshire Cat, I'll just disappear."_

She sighed deeply and crossed her arms over her chest, fighting the urge to grab the 'souvenir' from Wally's shelf and smash it to pieces. She hadn't been prepared for the confrontation with Cheshire and she didn't like being unprepared; it wasn't in her nature to let something slip through the cracks like that. It bothered her that Cheshire knew what she had been trying to hide and had threatened her with it.

Artemis had never responded well to threats. Had her teammates not been right inside that night, the fight would have gotten very, **very** ugly. While she didn't take well to threats, she had an even stronger aversion to losing. She turned when Wally stopped in the doorway and coughed to get her attention.

"Admiring my collection, I see," he said. He entered the room and stood next to her, grinning. "It's a pretty impressive collection so far. I can't wait to add to it!"

Artemis didn't answer and instead glanced at the mask once more before turning away, fighting to hide her irritation.

"Are you still upset about that chick from the Shadows getting away? If it's any consolation, she was _good_," Wally offered, sensing she was upset about something.

_Yeah, but I'm __**better**_, Artemis thought. She stopped in the doorway and turned around, toying with the end of her ponytail. Wally was looking at the objects on the shelf, but turned to look at her instead. His expression turned unusually serious.

"Look, I know I was really hard on you back then. I didn't know much about you, but I do know you were new to the team. But you had my back, when we woke up in Bialya. And.." He rubbed the back of his neck self-consciously.

"And?" she asked impatiently.

"I'm trying to apologize here, would you give me a minute?"

"Apologize for what?"

"For not trusting you."

Artemis was taken aback by Wally's admission. She swallowed quickly and flipped her ponytail back over her shoulder. "Oh, that? Don't worry about it," she replied dismissively. Wally shook his head.

"No, I _do_ worry about it. You're on this team and I.. and if Green Arrow trusts you? If Batman, of all people, trusts you? Then I should, too." He put his hands in his back pockets and looked down at the floor, then up at her.

"You should, but you don't." It wasn't a question. Artemis felt anger twitch in her chest.

Wally looked at her for a moment, his cheeks turning pink.

"It's not that I don't..well when you put it _that_ way.."

"No, I get it, I'm not Roy, the team's one and only archer. And I'm also a girl." Her eyes narrowed and she turned to walk away, but Wally's outburst stopped her.

"Nope, not happening. You don't get to play that card here and you know me better than that," he said, approaching her. She tilted her chin up in defiance as he stared her down. "It has nothing to do with you being a girl. It's just," he paused and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. "Just.. just give me a little time, ok? I don't doubt your loyalty or anything, it's just.. You're new. I've never heard of you. Logic says I need to see for myself that I can trust you."

Artemis cocked an eyebrow. She definitely didn't see _that_ coming. He wanted to trust her, but felt he couldn't, that he _shouldn't_ trust her right away. He was probably right- he shouldn't. But she couldn't exactly tell _him_ that.

"Logic says I need to prove my loyalties?" Wally didn't answer at first, choosing to stare at his shoes instead, before turning back toward the shelves. "What is that supposed to mean? I put myself between you and a tank. A tank, Wally. And you still don't think you can trust me?"

"Look, I.." he glanced up to try and explain himself only to find Artemis had vanished.

"I just wanted to say I'm almost there," he finished quietly, his voice barely echoing in the empty room.

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><p>"Wally, you and Superboy take the building south of the river. Artemis, you and Robin take the alley on the north side. Megan and I will take the east side, since the west is blocked off." Robin gave Artemis a subtle nod and turned back to his laptop, uploading some new software into his glove. Kaldur sat back down in his seat and resumed his and Megan's conversation about where best to leave the bioship.<p>

"Artemis?" Wally turned his seat toward her.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I was trying to say that I'm almost there," Wally whispered. He snuck a look at Superboy. If he'd heard Wally, he didn't acknowledge it.

"Don't worry about it. I don't trust you, either," she deadpanned. Wally's short intake of breath made her smile. It took a moment for him to notice she was smiling ever-so-slightly.

"Just so you know? I might trust you, but it still doesn't mean I have to like you."

"Likewise," she replied, rolling her eyes and turning back to the window.

"Just when I think you're capable of what most people call 'being nice', you show me that I'm right about you."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. On the outside? You're cold and unapproachable, and _just_ this side of 'bitch'. But on the inside? You're struggling with how you _really_ feel about me." He leaned back and grinned.

"And how do I _really _feel about you, Wally?"

"You're in love with me."

She squeezed her eyes shut. "Do you ever shut up? If I open my eyes, will you have disappeared?"

"You really want me to shut up and go away?"

"Wow, you must be so proud of your recent promotion to 'Captain' Obvious," Artemis muttered. Robin laughed loudly.

"Hey!" Wally stared at them both, mock hurt on his face.

"Megan, land on the rooftop over there. We'll deploy and meet back here in forty-five minutes." Kaldur interrupted, fighting a smile. He removed his seat belt and stood, glancing at each teammate before speaking again. His eyes stopped on Artemis.

"We have permission to engage if it's absolutely necessary. But since we're dealing with several members of the Japanese mafia, I urge you to be extremely careful. We haven't been up against anyone like this before."

_Yeah, except for Cheshire_, Artemis thought, frowning out the window. Kaldur continued to explain their mission plan. She easily tuned him out. _Ok, got it. Find the bad guys, bring 'em in. Blah blah blah.._

"Artemis?"

She turned, seeing Robin standing next to her seat, looking down at her. "Sorry. Ready?"

"Yeah. Do you think we should stay up on the rooftops, or stick to the shadows down in the alley?"

"You go high, I'll go low. That way we've got them both covered. Sound good?"

Robin nodded slowly, a smile spreading across his face. "Asterous plan- let's go!"

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><p>Twenty-three minutes later, she gripped her bow tightly in her fist and pressed herself flat up against the rough brick wall behind her. While she didn't speak Japanese, she could certainly infer these men were onto her, if the tones of their voices were any indication. Peering up from her hiding place she didn't see Robin.<p>

_I must have lost him after that last turn._

Artemis took a deep breath, and holding it, drew an arrow from her quiver. She notched the arrow and pulled the string back, releasing her breath slowly.

_And they should be coming around the corner right.. about... now._

She released the arrow, sending it the remaining fifty feet down the alley. It embedded itself into the crumbling brick, releasing a plume of thick, choking smoke. The men around the corner started coughing violently. Artemis grinned, noticing none of her teammates were nearby.

_Finally a chance to fight this battle __**my**__ way._

She crept silently through the shadows and down the alley, rounding the corner. A hand darted from the smoky haze and tangled itself in her hair. She gripped the wrist and twisted, the bones breaking easily in her small hands. She shook her head and the hand released its grip on her hair. The smoke began to clear rapidly and Artemis realized she was outnumbered four to one, five to one if she still counted the guy with the broken wrist.

"Your days of smuggling weapons are finished here," she said. "Now, if you'll come with me, no one else has to get hurt." She heard a chuckle from behind her. "You really want to do this the hard way? Bring it on," she replied with a smirk.

All at once they rushed her. She jumped into the air, planting both feet into the chest of the man coming at her head-on, knocking him back. A strong pair of arms wrapped themselves around her shoulders from behind, pinning her arms to her sides. With a growl, she brought her head back and brroke his nose. He grunted and managed to maintain his grip on her torso, and she crouched, bringing him down with her. With an explosive burst, she jumped straight up and tucked back over his head, landing behind him. She kicked the backs of his knees, making him stumble, and brought her fist down on his jaw, rendering him unconscious.

Two more of them lunged at her from the front. She ran toward them and jumped once again, wrapping her feet around the head of the one on her right. Her torso twisted, her legs pulling him downward. He met the ground with a groan as the other continued toward her. He threw several punches in rapid succession and she managed to block all but two. One connected with her right eye, the other with her chin as she leaned back to avoid it. She swiped at her eye with the back of her hand in an attempt to stop it from watering.

As he followed through with his next swing, she trapped his arm beneath hers and wrenched her elbow down, breaking both of the bones in his forearm. He dropped to the ground in pain, cradling his arm, and Artemis slammed her knee into his face.

_Two down, two and a half to go_.

The two remaining men drew knives and circled her, waiting for her to make the first move. When she didn't, the one on her left advanced. She barely had time to blink as he swung the blade at her and she leaned back out of the way, the blade laying open a shallow gash on her left shoulder as it swung past.

She ripped her bow from her back and used it to block his second swing. On his third try, he lunged at her in an attempt to stab her. She caught his arm in the string on her bow and twisted, the knife clanging to the asphalt. Yanking the bow toward her with his arm still tangled in it, the man stumbled forward and she elbowed him in the throat. He collapsed to his knees as he choked and her bow clattered to the ground.

The other man with a knife came at her, swinging the blade at her neck with surgeon-like precision. Artemis tucked and rolled, reaching into her quiver. She pulled out an arrow and plunged it into his hamstring. He swore and stumbled, but to his credit he didn't drop the knife. He turned quickly and she couldn't avoid the bite of the blade as it cut into her left calf. She stumbled and turned to glare at him. When he swung the knife low, she jumped and drove her heel into his sternum.

Hitting the ground with a dull thud, he lay still. She landed in a crouch and stayed there a moment to catch her breath. The man with the broken wrist stalked toward her, a knife he picked up from one of his unconscious comrades clutched in his good hand.

Artemis sighed and stood, watching him carefully. She had nothing to use to defend herself but when he lunged at her, she arched backward and gripped the man's only good arm. With one smooth twist, his hand released the knife and he howled in pain, his elbow nearly dislocating. She removed a set of zip ties from her belt and cuffed him to the chain-link fence he collapsed against.

_Well. I'd forgotten how much fun that was. _She smiled in satisfaction, wincing a bit as the movement in her cheek reminded her of the black eye she would have in the morning.

"Artemis, are you alright?" Robin barely made a sound as he landed on the ground next to her and retracted his grapple line. "I ran into a couple of these goons a block and a half back. I heard commotion and I came as soon as I could." He looked down at the five unconscious men at his feet. "Looks like I hurried for nothing. Nice work!"

"Thanks."

He glanced at her arm, noticing the blood trickling down her bicep.

"You're bleeding- you okay otherwise?" She looked down at her arm and shrugged, having completely forgotten about it. He glanced over her shoulder and noticed the knives on the ground next to two of the injured men. "They had knives? And you didn't wait for me? Why didn't you wait? You could really have gotten hurt. "

Artemis nervously glanced at the man by her feet as Robin applied a small field dressing to her shoulder. His fingers expertly secured the bandage and avoided wrapping it too tightly. It felt completely different from when she did it herself, and she took notice of the speed with which Robin had taken care of it.

"It was nothing, really. They spotted me and I had to retreat down there," she said, pointing to her left. "And they knew I'd gone that way. I had no choice. I couldn't wait."

She ruffled his hair playfully as a thank-you when he finished with the bandage and gently brushed past him. She headed back in the direction of the ship. Robin noticed she was fighting a limp and glanced down at her calf, noticing the deep crimson stain and the torn fabric. He couldn't tell how deep the gash was, but if Artemis was anything like him? It hurt like crazy and she would never admit it. He might as well give it a shot.

"If I offered to carry you, would you let me?" he asked. She heard the smile in his voice and forced herself to relax a bit, appreciative of his genuine concern. She wouldn't admit to herself that it would be nice to be taken care of, for once, instead of having to take care of herself.

She stopped walking and turned her head to the side. "Nope," she called over her shoulder. "I don't need to be carried."

"Then would you at least let me help you back to the ship?"

"Will you keep pestering me if I say no?"

"Of course."

She paused for a moment, weighing her options. "Fine, I'll let you help."

"Glad you see it my way. I didn't want to have to use my awesome powers of persuasion," Robin replied with a laugh and a shake of his head.

He took one last look at the unconscious Japanese mafia members at his feet, a feeling of unease settling in his stomach. He'd arrived earlier than he'd let on and watched the fight from the rooftop, ready to intervene if necessary. However, it hadn't come to that. She'd easily dispatched of all of them. When Robin arrived initially, he'd only counted two arrows: one in the wall, presumably a smoke arrow, and the other stuck in the back of one of the guy's legs. He didn't know whether to be impressed or nervous at the fact that she took out all five of these guys on her own with her bare hands, and did so in less than the six minutes it took him to get here.

Not even _he_ could do _that_.

He shook his head in an attempt to clear the doubt creeping into his mind. It had to be Green Arrow's training. Roy was also really good at hand-to-hand combat, and he'd learned most of it from Green Arrow.

That had to be it, right? Where else would she learn moves like that?

He rushed to catch up to Artemis and wrapped his arm around her waist, taking her arm and hooking it around his neck. Together they made their way back to the ship where the rest of the team was waiting. Robin eased her into her seat and they made eye contact as he stepped back. She quickly looked away and he turned, sitting down in his own seat. He thought about what he'd seen as he watched her fight, and couldn't actually remember Roy throwing moves like hers.

So if she didn't learn those moves from Ollie, where _did_ she learn them?

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><p>And the plot thickens. :)<p> 


	3. Chapter 2

Well, here it is. Chapter 2! I apologize to anyone who was waiting for an update; things have been crazy busy during the last month. I hope this chapter measures up!

Once again, I was extremely fortunate to have **DreamRabbit** look this over for me. I owe him a great deal for helping me sort this out and get it to a point where I was happy with it. So thank you for being my beta, again. :) And readers? You should go check out his work- you'll be awed, impressed and amazed. I promise!

I tinkered with it after he beta'd, so any mistakes are my own. I don't own Young Justice or DC Comics and I in no way profit from this.

This chapter has a K rating, but as a reminder, later chapters will have a more mature rating.

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><p>Dick leaned a shoulder against the window sill in the biology lab, his hands casually tucked in his pockets. The large room was on the third floor of Gotham Academy and overlooked the track and field complex. It was the perfect vantage point for doing some impromptu surveillance while he waited for his tutoring appointment to arrive. He'd ditched his suit jacket when the last period bell rang, loosening his tie and rolling up his sleeves.<p>

He watched a girl with long, blonde hair sprint around the track at a blistering pace. He glanced down at his watch again, noting she had finished a mile in just over five minutes and eight seconds. That had been mile number three. Mile one timed out at five minutes and fifty seconds. Mile number two had been just under five minutes and four seconds.

Dick frowned, wondering why on _earth_ Artemis was pushing herself so hard, especially since from where he was standing he could still see the bandage wrapped around the wound on her calf. She had been injured nearly two weeks ago but it had been severe enough she needed twenty stitches to close it. She and Green Arrow fought a lot over the fact he made her stop training for a week; she argued it wasn't fair and that she couldn't afford not to train. He argued she didn't know when to pull back the reins a bit and that she would aggravate her injury further.

One glare from Batman had shut them both up and that had been the end of _that_ debate. Artemis took a week off.

However, the minute she was given clearance to resume her normal level of physical activity, she'd thrown herself back into it with reckless abandon. She had exhausted Kaldur the first day, sparring for an hour and a half. Two days later, Wally threw up his hands and quit after only 45 minutes. Artemis had nearly managed to injure him and he'd had enough.

She had challenged Robin yesterday. He kept up with her the entire two hours and twenty minutes before she finally needed stop on account of her calf being sore. The few minutes they laid on the floor in the gym afterward gave him a glance at a side of Artemis no one else had seen yet. They lay there, breathing heavily, waiting for the other to speak first. Robin was the Prince of Patience that afternoon, knowing the minute he pushed she would get up and leave.

"Where'd you learn to do that?" she'd asked, slowly sitting up.

"Do what?" He continued laying flat on his back, hands behind his head.

"Your endurance. You're like a marathon runner or something. You don't even look tired."

Robin tilted his head and looked at her, a sly smile on his face. "Says the girl who's outlasted both Kaldur and Wally. And I know for a fact you were out running this morning, so who exactly is the master of endurance here?" He didn't miss the look of surprise that crossed her face. She cocked an eyebrow and looked at him.

"Hmm. Good point, I guess. How'd you know I was out this morning?"

He shrugged and sat up, swiping the back of his hand across his forehead. "You were limping when you walked in today and I've noticed you only do that when you've been running."

She nodded again and took a drink of water. "I don't know if I should be impressed or creeped out that you notice things like that."

He smiled and shrugged a shoulder. "Well, I care, for one thing. It was a nasty injury. And I'm Batman's partner, remember? 'World's Greatest Detective'?"

Artemis looked at him for a minute, blinking several times as if she was trying not to cry. She didn't answer, simply smiling in response. She stood and reached her hand down to help him up.

"Thanks, kid."

Dick sighed and continued watching her from the window. He noticed she couldn't fight the limp any longer and slowed to a somewhat more reasonable pace, roughly six and a half minutes a mile by his estimate.

"Hey."

Dick startled slightly at a familiar voice behind him from the doorway. He pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned to see his 'appointment' standing in the doorway. "You're late," he said, turning back to watch Artemis. He waited as Roy crossed the room and leaned on the opposite side of the window frame.

"No, you're just early, like usual," he said, looking at the expensive watch on his wrist. "You make being on time impossible." He tilted his head a bit when Dick just looked at him, then back out the window. "It must have been urgent, to meet here instead of your place or the cave. What's going on?"

"Where did you get the uniform?" Dick asked, dropping his gaze to Roy's jacket and tie. "I seem to remember Gotham Academy turned you down when you applied years ago."

Roy smirked at the less-than-obvious change of subject, choosing to go along with it. "I seem to remember you daring me to try and get my hands on one, just because I didn't get in." He glanced sideways at Dick, seeing him smile, before he looked out the window. "Who knew she was such a track star?" He watched her for a minute before turning back to Dick. "So, what are we 'studying' today?"

Dick sighed and looked back out the window one more time. Artemis was no longer running. Now she was sitting in the grass just off the track, stretching and checking on her calf. "I know you have intel, Roy. What do you know? And I swear, if you say 'nothing'? I'll find the photos from your birthday two years ago and start putting posters up around your apartment building."

Roy's eyebrows shot up in surprise and he chuckled. "Well. In that case, I'd better cooperate," he said, a bemused smile on his face. He sighed, watching Artemis slowly limp back to the parking lot where her bike was parked. "I admit I don't know a lot. But I do know she isn't Ollie's niece."

Dick sighed and turned away from the window, taking a seat on the table top next to his backpack. Roy noticed the change in Dick's demeanor; he was staring at the floor, his shoulders slumped. Apparently suspecting a teammate isn't your teammate didn't sit well with him. But, he wouldn't be going to the trouble if he didn't suspect something. It didn't sit well with Roy, either, having someone he distrusted to such a degree amongst his friends. If Dick didn't want to be the one to handle this, he was more than happy to take care of it. The kid had enough on his plate already.

"I knew she wasn't his niece the day I met her, Roy. Come on, you know I'm smarter than that. You need to give me more. Something I can use."

Roy turned, leaning his back against the wall behind him, not missing the fact Dick said 'I', not 'we', meaning the team wasn't in on this. "Look. I don't think it's fair for me to out her like this. I don't fully understand the little intel I have." He looked pointedly at Dick, his expression softening a bit at Dick's frustrated sigh. "You know if you were in my situation you would do the same thing. Let's try it this way. What have you seen so far?"

Dick thought for a moment. "She doesn't like doing anything personal with anyone; she always does the group activities with us, but the minute it might become a one-on-one situation? She bails."

Roy nodded, not surprised with any of the information. "Okay, what else?"

"When we were in Maryland two weeks ago? You know, the mission to break up that smuggling ring?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"She took on five armed guys by herself, and she only used her bow as an afterthought."

Roy's expression immediately turned serious at the mention of just how dangerous she might really be.

"She did _what_?"

"She took on five guys alone. At least two of them had weapons. We got separated for just a few minutes, and by the time I got there? She took them all out. At first, I thought she learned all that stuff from Ollie and Canary, like you did, but.." Dick stopped, his eyes meeting Roy's for a moment.

"But?"

Dick hesitated and gave him a wary look. "But she was better than that. I think she could have taken you out, along with any one of us, Canary included. And it wouldn't have been that difficult for her to do."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, neither having any clue as to what to say. Roy cleared his throat and spoke first.

"So, we know she's been trained by someone more skilled than GA or Canary, right?" Dick nodded. "Who do we know that's capable of that?"

Dick stood up and started pacing a little as he ran through a list of people in his head. "Well, there's Bruce, but that doesn't fit. The style isn't right; she fights to wound. Bruce fights to stop, you know? And it's definitely not Clark, Barry or.." He trailed off, running out of possibilities that even came close to making sense.

Roy mentally ticked down a list of his own, coming to the same conclusion Dick had. No one they knew was capable of what Dick was explaining to him, and for Dick to talk about what Artemis had done and be so wary of it? The girl had to be scary-good. He absently ran his hand over his chest, flattening his tie against his shirt when Cheshire popped into his head. Wally told him about her after the incident with Doctor Roquette and he'd done his homework. He glanced back at Dick, who had stopped pacing and was staring at him.

"Spill it, Roy. I know you've got something."

Roy mentally rolled his eyes at the Dick's ability to read him like a book. "It's nothing. It's just.. have you run any of this by Bruce? What did he have to say?"

Dick pulled a face of his own, his blue eyes rolling upward. "I won't say anything to him until I know for certain I've got something important enough to act on. At this point? He'd just tell me to 'observe and report', anyway."

Roy smiled; as hard as Dick tried to be mature sometimes, there were other times he couldn't help but be a thirteen year-old.

"He's right, you know. At this point we have nothing. So keep doing what you're doing; keep an eye on her if you feel you need to."

Dick glanced up at him as he rolled his sleeves back down, buttoning the cuffs again and putting his jacket back on. "What you are going to do?"

Roy shrugged. "Nothing much at this point. I might ask around and see what I can find out. I'll let you know if I find something." He pushed off the wall and headed for the door. "Let me know if you need anything, okay?"

"Same goes for you too, Roy. Got it?" Dick eyed him skeptically. "Please? If there's something I need to know, if it affects our team? You'd tell me, wouldn't you?"

The night Roy confronted Artemis in the alley flickered in his memory for a moment, and his gut flinched slightly as he lied to Dick with a straight face. "Of course, you know me." He turned and left, rushing to leave before someone figured out he didn't belong there.

* * *

><p>Artemis grunted slightly as she climbed the stairs to her apartment, her sore calf protesting angrily as she reached the last landing. Working herself to the point of exhaustion was the only tactic she had tried that kept her thoughts at bay, since Robin had nearly caught her using her 'other skills' in Maryland.<p>

She was fairly certain he was onto her and she worked really hard to keep things the way they'd always been, but she had to admit it was really difficult to act like business as usual when her business had been lying to everyone she currently worked with. She learned a few times that lies don't always make good covers for other lies. Eventually they all come out whether you want them to or not.

She unlocked the door to the apartment and stumbled inside, mumbling a greeting to her mother in the living room. The clock in the kitchen read just after five, so she had time to take a nice hot shower before making dinner and finishing her 'homework'. Her report was due later tonight and she didn't like to think of what would happen if it was late.

Artemis hobbled to the bathroom and winced as she unwound the bandage from her leg, gently brushing her fingers along the still-healing gash. The stitches were gone, but the injury had been deep enough to cut into the muscle and that took longer to heal than she thought it would.

When she emerged from the bathroom in a cloud of steam half an hour later, her mother had her cell phone in her hand. Artemis bristled at the thought of her mother going through her backpack, but dismissed it with a smile and took the phone.

"Hello?"

"Artemis!"

She winced at Megan's perky voice and went down the short hallway to her bedroom "Hey, Megan. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm fine. Are you busy tonight?"

"Actually, I'm.."

"Good! We're having a movie night tonight and we want you to come."

"Ah, well. I'd like to, but.."

She could hear Wally in the background, asking if she would stop and pick up something more to eat.

"Tell Wally I don't have nearly enough money to feed him."

"Wally? Artemis says she doesn't have enough money to feed you."

Robin laughed loudly as Wally mumbled something Artemis couldn't understand. "Megan? Look, I'd like to come, but I really have a lot of homework to do. I want to get it done now in case something comes up this weekend, if you get what I mean." She closed her eyes and put the heel of her hand against her forehead, feeling surprisingly guilty for lying to Megan about her non-existent homework.

"I understand, Artemis, it's okay. While I wish you could come, school is important, too. Hopefully I see you soon, though! You'll have to tell me all about your new school."

"I will, Megan. I'll tell you all about it later. But I have to go make dinner. Bye!" She closed her phone, without listening to Megan's reply, and dropped it on the bed beside her. "You can't afford friends, Artemis. Remember that," she said quietly, as she got up to get dressed.

For some reason Roy's threat echoed in her head and she looked back at the phone on the bed.

_Not. Good._

* * *

><p>Megan hung up the phone and turned back to the group.<p>

"Artemis isn't coming, is she?" Kaldur asked. Megan shook her head.

"She said she had a lot of homework."

Robin tensed slightly and Kaldur immediately noticed.

"Robin? What's wrong?"

_Besides the fact we didn't have any homework this weekend because of finals?_

"Nothing. It's just too bad she can't make it."

Wally paused their game and turned to look at Robin. "Didn't you say your school didn't give out homework this week because of finals?"

_Crap_. "Yeah, why?" Robin hit 'pause' on the game, resuming their play.

"Then why is she at home doing homework? Don't most schools stop giving out homework before finals?"

"She must have had some things to finish up. Not all the schools are the same, I guess."

"Oh, okay." Wally turned back to the game, dropping the subject entirely. Kaldur looked at him once more and deciding Robin was telling the truth, turned back to his game of checkers with Megan.

* * *

><p>Artemis climbed into bed, falling back against her pillow with a sigh. Her report had taken longer to finish than she thought and it ended up being twenty minutes late. Hopefully they wouldn't notice. She closed her eyes and felt herself drifting off to sleep. That's when her "other" cell phone rang.<p>

"You've got to be kidding me," she muttered, throwing back the blankets and climbing out of bed. Dropping to her knees she reached under the bed and her fingers curled around the phone, tugging it free from his case attached to the box spring. She flipped it open with her thumb.

"What?"

"Corner of 8th and Cedar. Twenty minutes."

"But it's two.."

"Fifteen minutes."

The call disconnected and she put the phone back.

Grumbling to herself in the dark, she got dressed and silently climbed down the fire escape. She wheeled her bike around the corner before starting the engine and driving away. Twelve minutes later, she was at the corner of 8th and Cedar as instructed. However, whoever had been on the other end of the line was nowhere to be found.

"Nice," she muttered, looking around. She noticed an envelope stapled to the telephone pole.

**Artemis.** In neat, flowing script. Like usual.

She flipped the kickstand down on the bike and crossed the street, tugging the envelope from the post. She didn't bother opening it and tucked it into the inside pocket on her jacket; she already knew what it said. She'd have to pay for being late. And for being mouthy. Instead of heading home, she went to the address on the card in the envelope. Hopefully she could keep up tonight.

* * *

><p>Artemis woke to her communicator buzzing angrily from her nightstand, and the minute she opened her eyes she squinted at the bright sunlight.<p>

_Thanks for opening the curtains again, Mom_. She picked up the communicator and answered it.

"Yeah?"

"Artemis? It's Kaldur. You're needed at the cave. We've got something we need to take care of."

"I'll be there in thirty," she yawned and flipped the device off. She winced a bit at the ache in her jaw as she yawned again and crawled out of bed, grabbing some clothes on her way to the bathroom. She sighed heavily when she saw her reflection in the mirror.

The black eye she had was worse than she'd anticipated, as a result of being caught off-guard the night before. And the fact she couldn't wear her mask to the cave made it difficult to hide it. She bit her bottom lip, trying to figure out a way to hide it. No amount of concealer would disguise it as anything but a shiner, and she had about twenty minutes to come up with an excuse before she was grilled about it by her teammates. And the 'I'm just clumsy' excuse definitely wouldn't work for her. She sighed quietly and got dressed, gathering her hair into a ponytail as she left the apartment.

"I'll see you later, mom! Bye!"

The trip went entirely too fast for her liking and she'd had yet to come up with a reason as to why she was sporting her sunglasses inside.

"Hey, Artemis! Nice to see you!" Wally said, waving as she walked in. Superboy gave her a nod, as did Kaldur.

"Artemis! Hi!" Megan rushed over and gave her a small hug, catching her by surprise. "You missed a fun movie night last night! I hope you can make it to the next one."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I don't want to fall behind at school, you know? Especially since I just started and everything." Artemis glanced around, noting that everyone was busy doing something else and hopefully wouldn't notice she was still wearing her sunglasses. "What's going on?"

"Everyone meet in the briefing room, please." Red Tornado's voice came through the intercom system and they all shuffled down the hallway. They gathered in front of the computer screen as Batman turned to greet them. His gaze hesitated just slightly as he looked at Artemis and she took off her sunglasses self-consciously.

"Holy CRAP, Artemis! What happened to your eye?" Wally rushed over and put his fingers on her chin, carefully tilting her face upward. She swatted his hand away and blushed as everyone turned to look at her.

"I'm fine, I was working on my bike and something startled me. I turned into the handle. It's no big deal."

From out of nowhere, Robin tossed her a small ice pack. He didn't say a word and offered a small smile, watching her carefully. She worked the ice pack between her fingers and once it was cold she held it to her eye, trying not to look at Robin. He was looking at her like he had in Maryland and it bothered her.

Wally just studied her. He didn't buy her explanation, either, but he didn't question it as obviously as Robin did. "Yeah, okay. Be more careful next time, would you?"

"Can we focus on something else, please? I'm fine."

Batman briefed them on their goals for the afternoon and when he was finished, they went to change before they headed out. Wally cornered her in the hallway, concern all over his face.

"Artemis?"

"Wally?"

He put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her and turning her around. "Artemis, you know you can talk to me, right?"

_Oh, great. I see where this is going. _She held up a hand to cut him off.

"Wally, I'm fine. It was an accident. They do happen sometimes, but I know it's hard to understand that when most of the time, they happen to you." She turned away again, intending to go change.

"Hey, seriously. Someone like you just doesn't turn into a handlebar on a motorcycle. I've noticed you training really hard lately, and I have to say I'm kind of worried. Especially after Robin told me you sparred with him for what, two and a half hours? What's going on?"

She froze and didn't turn around. She knew Robin had his suspicions, but Wally? He just flat out _cared_. She didn't know which was worse: the fact that he cared, or the fact that she found herself being touched his concern. She had always wondered what it felt like, for someone to care about her like he apparently did.

"Look," she said, meeting his puzzled gaze. "I'm fine, really. This," she pointed to her face, "really was an accident. As far as the training goes, I guess I'm just pushing to see how much I can take." She was surprised at how honest that sounded and the fact it was nice not to have to lie for once. In this case? The truth really did seem to work.

His stern look softened slightly and he shoved his hands in his pockets. "You know you're on a team, right? That you don't have to worry about how much you'll have to take? That's what we're all here for, to help each other." He gestured with his hand between the two of them and stepped closer.

Artemis instinctively stepped back, maintaining their distance. "Until we get separated, like what happened in Maryland two weeks ago. Then you have to fend for yourself."

Wally defiantly took another step closer. "That was your choice not to wait. While your injuries suck? You went in there by yourself and didn't wait for Robin. That's what happens."

"You're saying this is my fault?" she asked, incredulously, and turned her leg to show him the injury. Wally's jaw clenched at the sight of the angry red scar. "You're saying this wouldn't have happened had I waited?" Her hands balled into fists at her sides and she stood in front of Wally, fire in her eyes. "You know what would have happened had I waited?"

He didn't say anything, choosing just to look at her and wait until she finished, his arms crossed at his chest.

"This would have been the _least_ of it," she spat. "They would have enjoyed nothing more than to fillet me like a fish. So it was either wait for them to come at me, not knowing how long I would have to wait, or to take action. So I acted. And it saved my life."

He shook his head and rubbed his jaw. "You know? If this is what I get for caring? I'm not sure I'll bother next time. All I wanted to know was what really happened, and if it was something I could help with."

"I don't need your help!" she cried. "I'm fine!"

"I never said you weren't alright," Wally answered, tilting his head a little. "I know you can take care of yourself. But if there was a way I could help? I'd _want_ to."

His words touched a nerve and she bit the inside of her cheek to stifle a reaction. "Yeah, well. I don't need your help, and I definitely don't want it, either. I'm fine." She tossed him the ice pack, hurrying down the hall.

"What's the supposed to mean?"

"It's nothing."

He jogged to catch up with her and grabbed her forearm. "No, tell me. Why should you have to do everything on your own?"

She tensed and glanced down at his hand. "Let it go, KF. Seriously."

"Not until you tell me what you meant."

"I'm warning you.."

"So? I'm persistent."

She grabbed his wrist with both hands and twisted, smoothly wrenching his arm behind him and turning him around so he faced the opposite direction. Before he could tug his arm away, she kicked his leg from behind and he fell to the floor, crouched down on his knees.

"I said, let. It. _Go_," she whispered. "It doesn't matter."

She released his arm, leaving him on his knees on the floor. He turned his head and watched her walk away.

"It matters to some of us," Wally muttered quietly, as he got to his feet and walked in the opposite direction.


End file.
